Connecticut voters decided on 85 statewide ballot measures between 1845 and 2025. Of these, 77 (90%) were approved and 8 (10%) were defeated.
The Connecticut General Assembly referred 82 measures to the state ballot between 1845 and 2025, including 79 constitutional amendments; two non-binding questions; and one constitutional convention question.
Voters have also decided on two automatic constitutional convention questions and one constitutional convention-referred amendment.
The inventory of Connecticut statewide ballot measures is part of Ballotpedia's Historical Ballot Measure Factbook, which will document nearly 200 years of direct democracy in the United States. This ongoing research effort will provide an unparalleled resource for researchers, reporters, and the voting public on how ballot measures have evolved, the issues they've covered, and the role they have played in our civic life.
This section provides a table to search Connecticut historical ballot measures by decade and keyword.
This section summarizes notable topics Connecticut voters have decided on.
This section highlights measures with the closest and widest margins, as well as the breakdown by topic, decade, and type.
This section describes the process of placing a statewide measure on the ballot.
Ballotpedia completed an inventory of Connecticut ballot measures from 1845 to 2025. Voters in Connecticut have decided on 85 ballot measures placed on the ballot by the Connecticut State Legislature. The types of measures included legislatively referred constitutional convention questions (1); constitutional convention referrals (1); automatic constitutional convention questions (2); advisory questions (2); and legislatively referred constitutional amendments (79).
Of the 85 measures, 77 (90%) were approved, while eight (10%) were defeated.
The inventory of Connecticut statewide ballot measures is part of Ballotpedia's Historical Ballot Measure Factbook, which will document nearly 200 years of direct democracy in the United States. This ongoing research effort will provide an unparalleled resource for researchers, reporters, and the voting public on how ballot measures have evolved, the issues they've covered, and the role they have played in our civic life.
Notable topics
Notable topics appearing on the Connecticut ballot include voting policy, such as voter eligibility and absentee voting, as well as redistricting and reapportionment.
Voting registration and eligibility
- In 1845, voters approved an amendment that established that qualified electors must be a white male; 21 years of age; a resident in the state for at least one year; a resident in their town for at least six months; and sustain a good moral character.
- Voters defeated two amendments, Question 1 in 1847 (21.9%) and Question 1 in 1865 (44.8%) that would have removed the race requirement to become an elector.
- In 1855, voters approved a ballot measure requiring electors to be able to read any article of the state constitution or any state statute.
- After the 15th Amendment was ratified in 1870, the race requirement to become an elector was officially removed from the Connecticut Constitution 1876 when voters approved an amendment (by 86.1%) that removed the word "white" from the list of qualifications.
- In 1962, voters approved two amendments that allowed the General Assembly pass laws that provide for the method to register voters and allowed residents who moved within the state to be eligible to vote after six months.
- Voters approved a measure in 1964 that lowered the residency requirements for becoming an elector to six months in their town instead of both one year in the state and six months in their town.
- Question 3, which would have lowered the voting age from 21-years-old to 18, was defeated in 1970.
- In 1976, voters approved an amendment that allowed 17-year-olds who would turn 18 on or before Election Day to register to vote.
- Question 2, which was approved by voters in 1980, removed the provision allowing 17-year-olds to register to vote and authorized the Connecticut General Assembly to pass laws that provided new requirements for them to do so.
- In 1992, voters approved an amendment that allowed all voters to register to vote while away from their local registrar's office.
- Voters approved Question 2 in 2008, which allowed residents to vote in primary elections at age 17, as long as they turned 18 on or before Election Day.
- In 1948, voters approved a measure that granted the Connecticut General Assembly the authority to determine which offenses would cause a person to lose their voting rights; the conditions for regaining their rights; and the methods by which voting rights may be restored.
- Question 3, which stated that persons with a felony conviction forfeited "the right to be made an elector," was approved by voters in 1974.
Absentee and early voting
- The first ballot measure concerning absentee ballots in the state was approved in 1864, which temporarily allowed volunteers and people who were drafted to join the Union during the Civil War to cast absentee ballots throughout the duration of the war.
- Voters approved Question 1 in 1962, thereby allowing voters to cast absentee ballots for constitutional amendments.
- In 1964, voters approved a measure that allowed voters to cast absentee ballots if Election Day fell on a religious holiday.
- Question 1, which would have permitted the legislature to pass laws to provide for fewer requirements for early voting and eligibility to cast absentee ballots, was defeated by voters in 2014.
- The Connecticut General Assembly was authorized to pass laws to provide for early voting in person when voters approved Question 1 in 2022.
- In 2024, voters approved a measure that authorized the state legislature to pass laws to provide for no-excuse absentee voting, with about 58% of voters approving it.
Redistricting
- In 1874, voters approved an amendment that granted a town two representatives to the state's House of Representatives if it had more than 5,000 residents in the federal decennial census.
- Question 1 was approved in 1876, which placed newly-formed towns with a population of less than 2,500 residents in the same electoral district as a larger town in the state's House of Representatives.
- An amendment was approved by voters in 1976, which changed the procedures and deadlines for reapportionment.
- In 1990, voters approved an amendment that extended the deadlines for legislative redistricting following the federal decennial census by one month.
- The state legislature referred a measure in 1901 to hold a constitutional convention the following year to potentially amend or revise the Connecticut Constitution, which voters approved.
- In 1902, voters defeated Question 1, which was referred by the constitutional convention that was approved the previous year, and would have provided amendments to the reapportionment of state representatives; the process for calling special sessions of the General Assembly; and the appointment procedures for judges of the courts of common pleas.
Statistics
Closest and widest margins
Of the 85 ballot measures, one was decided by less than a percentage point of the vote. The measure with the closest margin (0.84%) addressed removing party levers from voting machines. The top five closest measures are below:
| Closest vote margins for Connecticut statewide ballot measures, 1845-2025 | |||||||
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| Measure | Year | Yes votes | No votes | Vote margin | Outcome | ||
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The ballot measure with the widest margin (96.90%) addressed moving the election date for state officials to November to coincide with Election Day. The following five measures had the widest vote margins by percentage:
| Widest vote margins for Connecticut statewide ballot measures, 1845-2025 | |||||||
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| Measure | Year | Yes votes | No votes | Vote margin | Outcome | ||
| # | % | # | % | ||||
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Connecticut ballot measure topics
Connecticut ballot measures have addressed 48 unique topics with some addressing multiple topics in one measure. The top 10 most common topics addressed are:
- Voter registration (9 measures)
- Voting age policy (8 measures)
- State judicial selection (8 measures)
- Absentee and mail voting (7 measures)
- State legislative authority (6 measures)
- Redistricting policy (6 measures)
- Residency voting requirements (6 measures)
- Salaries of government officials (5 measures)
- State legislative processes and sessions (5 measures)
- State executive powers and duties (4 measures)
By the decade
The average number of ballot measures per decade was roughly five, with an average approval rate of 84%. The 1980s had the most ballot measures, with 14 in total. Of these, 13 (93%) were approved and one (7%) was defeated. The decades with the highest approval rate (all at 100%) were the 1850s (four measures), 1870s (12 measures), 1930s (five measures), 1950s (three measures), 1960s (eight measures), and the 2020s (two measures). The decades with the lowest approval rate (all at 50%) were the 1840s, 1860s, and the 1900s.
By type
- See also: Types of ballot measures in Connecticut
There are five different types of ballot measures in Connecticut. Legislatively referred constitutional amendments have appeared on the ballot the most number of times (79), while legislatively referred advisory questions (2), legislatively referred constitutional convention questions (1), constitutional convention referral (1), and automatic constitutional convention questions (2) are less common. Every 20 years, Connecticut puts an automatic constitutional convention question on the ballot.
Connecticut voters have never approved an automatic constitutional convention question throughout the state's history.
Background
In Connecticut, the Connecticut General Assembly can vote to refer measures to the ballot. There is no citizen-initiated ballot measure process in Connecticut.
Legislatively referred constitutional amendments
In Connecticut, a constitutional amendment can be referred to the ballot after one legislative session or two legislative sessions depending on the vote count.
When an amendment receives a 75% vote in both legislative chambers, the amendment goes on the ballot. That amounts to a minimum of 114 votes in the Connecticut House of Representatives and 27 votes in the Connecticut State Senate, assuming no vacancies.
When an amendment receives a simple majority vote in both legislative chambers, the amendment must pass during two successive legislative sessions to go on the ballot. That amounts to a minimum of 76 votes in the Connecticut House of Representatives and 19 votes in the Connecticut State Senate, assuming no vacancies.
Amendments do not require the governor's signature to be referred to the ballot.
Constitutional convention questions and referrals
According to Article XIII of the Connecticut Constitution, a question about whether to hold a state constitutional convention is to automatically appear on the state's ballot every 20 years starting in 1978. Connecticut is one of 14 states that provides for an automatic constitutional convention question.
The table below shows the last and next automatic constitutional convention question election years:
| State | Interval | Last question on the ballot | Next question on the ballot |
|---|---|---|---|
| Connecticut | 20 years | 2008 | 2028 |
The Legislature can also refer a constitutional convention question to the ballot. A two-thirds vote is required in each legislative chamber to refer a convention question to the ballot.
Proposals adopted at a state constitutional convention require voter approval.
